MARCH 2017 12 | FRONTDOORSMEDIA .COM a challenge — and I really love challenges. I am comfortable in those situations. The end result can be a positive for our charity.” The charity is, of course, the Muhammad Ali Parkinson Center at Barrow Neurological Institute in Phoenix. Since its inception, Celebrity Fight Night has raised more than $127 million primarily to benefit the center. On March 18, Walker, celebrities and guests will celebrate and honor the life of Ali at Celebrity Fight Night at the JW Marriott Desert Ridge Resort & Spa in Phoenix.“The passion I have for this certainly comes from seeing that we’ve raised a lot of money and helped a lot of people at the Muhammad Ali Parkinson Center,” Walker said. “We’re providing people who couldn’t afford their medication for Parkinson’s disease so it’s the old philosophy, ‘If you want to be happy, find a way to make other people happy.’ So thanks to a lot of generous donors we’ve really got an event that’s as much national as local.” For Walker, the event is a passion, fun and entertainment. “You meet some wonderful people,” he said. “But it’s very challenging. It’s a commitment. We want to keep raising the bar and we want to improve upon it every year and we’ve seen where we’ve gotten some real good results.” COVER STORY CONTINUED His wife, Nancy Walker, said she never imagined before Fight Night that she would be rubbing elbows with A-list musicians, athletes and Hollywood actors. But she never doubted that her husband could get all these bold-face names to embrace the cause. “He really is very amazing,” she said. “When he first started this he said this is a charity event that’s one year at a time. Because when you have something for the first time you have no idea that’s it’s necessarily going to be something that continues on for this many years and become what it is. And we just appreciate the support from so many people that have helped make this what it is.” Guests pay between $1,500 and $5,000 for Celebrity Fight Night tickets. This year, ticket holders will get to see a lot of stars — from hometown heroes Larry Fitzgerald and Carson Palmer to actor Harrison Ford. Billy Crystal, Sharon Stone and Larry King will present a special tribute to Ali. Ali’s wife, Lonnie Ali, and daughter, Laila Ali, will attend. Actor Dennis Quaid, country stars Reba McIntyre and Brooks & Dunn, singer Smokey Robinson, Beach Boys co-founder Mike Love, and singer Brian McKnight will also be there.

MARCH 2017 FRONTDOORSMEDIA .COM | 13 “ The celebrities keep coming back because they truly enjoy the evening, Jimmy Walker said. “I say this very humbly — many of them say it’s their favorite event,” he said. Nancy said, “I’ve sat next to so many celebrities through the years and they’ve all been amazing and so supportive and so willing, and wanting to be there and to help.“ The high wattage of the celebrity lineup has been a staple since the first Fight Night event, which featured Charles Barkley, who played for the Phoenix Suns at the time; Dan Majerle, the former Suns star, and boxing champion Michael Carbajal, who sparred with Barkley in the ring with oversized boxing gloves. “It’s certainly an event here locally that’s the only one of its kind,” said Nancy Walker. She and her husband make the celebrities get the star treatment. They may fly into Phoenix on private jets donated by the owners in support of the event. They get a driver who is available to them all day and night. They stay in some of the best rooms in some of the area’s best hotels. Muhammad Ali was always the big draw to Fight Night, Nancy said. “People loved Muhammad Ali — and Muhammad Ali loved people, and he made that completely understood,” she said. But Nancy also has other fond memories and favorite moments, such as Kevin Costner’s acceptance speech for an award he received at one of the events and the support of a local celebrity of sorts, GoDaddy.com founder and philanthropist Bob Parsons. Parsons, she said, “really, really loved Muhammad and really wanted to see the Parkinson Center become bigger and better and really able to make a difference with this disease.” The Walkers want the legacy to continue because they want to see the Muhammad Ali Parkinson Center continue to grow and improve. The best moment is just sitting next to Muhammad Ali and just watching him, observing him. He loved it. He loved being Muhammad Ali. He loved the attention and he got the attention.” COVER STORY CONTINUED